Strategy reversal at Netflix

A thoughtful review of Netflix move to split DVD from streamed movie delivery and then reverse the change. It’s good to see an event examined for plusses and minusses, rather than just praised or derided – and the story has useful lessons for others making strategic moves.

One particular issue it brings up is the tension between what works for customer-facing issues vs. what works back in operations. Here, consumers want a single relationship, whether they rent physical DVDs or stream video-movies, but the business operations to provide those two services are fundamentally different.